It depends where you are. I understand that you can do this in the UK.

What you have to be careful of is the definition of a public place. I was in Glasgow one day and I saw a great image in a shopping mall. I proceeded to take a picture and I was immediately approached by one of the security staff who told me that photography was not allowed and insisted that I delete the image. She explained that this was because it was not a public place. The mall was a private owned building.

>>When trying to take a photo in a busy city, it's almost impossible to get a clear shot of your target without a passerby or bystander.

get up earlier, the light is generally considered better for photos early in the morning ... i've found around 5.30-6.30am can be a good time to get good shots without people around - depends on your location and the time of year though.

... as for obscuring people my understanding is that BeeDeeDubbleU is totally correct, different countries have different laws.

get up earlier, the light is generally considered better for photos early in the morning ... i've found around 5.30-6.30am can be a good time to get good shots without people around - depends on your location and the time of year though.

On the other hand you will stand out then and will be far more likely to be picked up as a potential terrorist (depends on the city of course)

A technique I've seen done (regrettably I don't have a link to the paper handy) is to take multiple pictures of the place (e.g., while standing around with your camera on a tripod), then stitch those pictures together to create a people-less composite.

In most locales, if FACES are recognizable. A close shot of a building (think McD), just make sure you get a$$ side images (no faces), or GET PHOTO MODEL releases. Or pick a different time when there is no pedestrian traffic.

I can only tell you how the legal situation is in my country. (Germany) If the picture has been taken in public and the person is a bystander and not the main subject of the picture you do not have to ask for permission or obscure any faces. So if you take a picture of a church and there are people in front, there is no problem. However if you zoom in on one of the people or a group of people and make them the main subject and the church the background you would need permission for publication. As always with legals subjects - what is right in one country may be wrong in another, but perhaps this information can give you a starting point for some research.